The Slap Heard Around the World
by AnnKy
Summary: SongFics... After episode Holiday, from pov of Ashley, Manny, and Craig :-)
1. Boulevard of Broken Dreams

"Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day

**I walk a lonely road **

Craig walked home from school in the chilly, dim night. He was alone. He was alone. He was alone. Not only was he walking home in the middle of the night by himself, but after tonight he was literally alone… forever. The past few months with Ashley had been so amazing. He didn't know if things could be any better. And then… they were. He and Manny shared the most passionate and incomprehensible bond. He felt on top of the world… who was he kidding?

**  
The only one that I have ever known  
**

Craig wasn't capable of love. He felt the most undying and intense feelings for Ashley. He loved her _so_ much. But subconsciously, he was scared and hesitant. He screwed everything up because that's what he _always _did. He screwed up each relationship he was in. He was searching for someone to care for… maybe he just hadn't found her yet. Did he really love Ashley? Did he really love Manny? He was so confused.

**Don't know where it goes  
But it's home to me and I walk alone**

Craig's guitar case was heavy in his right hand. It was silly of him to walk home from Degrassi when Joey could have easily driven him. But he wanted time to think. It had been an eventful night. First, Ashley slapped him on stage in front of the whole school. Then both she and Manny confronted him about his betrayal. His face was growing red with embarrassment and anger.

**I walk this empty street  
On the Boulevard of broken dreams  
Where the city sleeps  
And I'm the only one and I walk alone**

Love worked out for other people. Joey confronted his past tonight and made the realization that he loved Caitlin. And he would love her forever. It was _only _Craig who didn't have that luck.

**I walk alone**

He kicked a rock as far as he possibly could as his house came into sight. He paused for a moment and looked at the sky. He felt unbounded and infinite. Maybe loneliness was best for him. He liked Manny _and _he liked Ashley. Wasn't he pathetic? Tonight at the Holiday show, he felt on top of the world. Until, of course, everything fell apart.

**My shadows the only one that walks beside me  
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating**

He walked into his front hallway and muttered a response to Joey's call. He trudged unwillingly up the stairs. He collapsed onto his bed and lie on his back. Unblinking, he stared at the ceiling for hours. He has been through so much in the past year. He needed someone to trust and to confide in.

**Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me**

Being with Manny was amazing. She was young, refreshing and kind. But she lacked the maturity and seriousness he needed to talk about what was going on in his life and in the world. Ashley was utter perfection. She was beautiful, tall, graceful and understanding, But sometimes all Craig wanted was _fun. _He was through with gloom and doom. He couldn't settle down at this point in his life.

**  
Till then I walk alone**

His biggest regret was hurting the two most wonderful girls he had ever known. Manny would be the subject of every juicy rumor at school for months. She would be called a slut and a whore, and only Craig knew that wasn't true. She was the epitome of innocence and adoration. Ashley would feel alone and hurt. She would feel betrayed and unloved. He would give anything for her to realize that she was the subject of every one of his thoughts. Or rather, half of them.

**I'm walking down the line  
That divides me somewhere in my mind**

Why should be forced to make a choice? He didn't know what he truly wanted. And know, because he was an idiot, he would have neither girl. He would have not so much as their friendship. And that absolutely killed him.

**  
On the border line of the edge  
And where I walk alone  
**

As he rolled over in the morning to hit snooze on his alarm clock, intense feelings of lament washed over him. He felt sickened to his stomach. He couldn't imagine facing Ashley or Manny. Everyone at school would think he was such an ass… He pulled his comforter over his head and screamed into his pillow.

**  
Read between the lines  
What's fucked up and everything's all right**

After about twenty minutes of snoozing, his half-sister Angela bounded into the room. She jumped on his bed and whined, "Craiggggg wake up! I made breakfast! Wake up Craig! Why are you still sleeping?" He slowly sat up and smiled at her.

"Good morning, Angie," he stated with a smile. "I'm going to take a shower and I'll be right down for breakfast." The young curly haired girl giggled with delight and ran down the stairs at a blistering pace.

**Check my vital signs to know I'm still alive**

He knew things would be fine eventually. Ashley would move on and find someone. Manny would grow older and find a man to love her. And Craig would find the one for him as well… _eventually._

**  
And I walk alone**


	2. Brilliant Dance

"Brilliant Dance" by Dashboard Confessional

**So this is odd**

**A painful realization that all has gone wrong**

**And nobody cares at all….**

Manny rushed into school at a frightening pace. She couldn't afford to be late for the third time this week. Especially being that it was Wednesday.

Dubious stares from her classmates reminded her why she hated to be early. The collective whispers combined to make a deafening noise that only she could hear.

"What a slut… How could she do that?... Poor Ashley… I can't believe her…" her peers sneered. Manny rolled her eyes and paused to search the crowd for a friendly face. Then she came to the disappointed awareness that there were no friendly faces in her world anymore. She had hurt a lot of people; things had changed for Manuela Santos.

She turned away to resume her journey to first period, and knocked into a tall thin blonde. They shared a lengthy glance and exchanged awkward hellos. Then her former best friend Emma hesitantly walked away, shaking her head.

**And nobody cares at all.**

Manny made a pit-stop at her locker. On her third attempt, it finally opened. She was having a miserable first week back from winter vacation. She spent the Christmas Holidays lonely and lazy at home. She thought of Craig all the time… she thought of his lies and betrayal. She thought of the look on Ashley's face when they discovered how Craig was playing them both. She took out a Biology textbook and was sickened by a picture of her and Craig that fluttered leisurely to the floor.

**So you buried all your Lover's clothes**

**And burned the letters lover wrote**

**But it doesn't make it any better?**

She picked up the photograph and thought about the day it was taken. Craig met her at the ice-skating rink and promised her that he would end his relationship with Ashley. He promised her they would be together. For good. Apparently promises meant little to Craig Manning. She crumpled the photo and shred a note in which he pledged his supposed love for her. He was unbelievable… literally. She grabbed a handful of other mementos and slammed her locker. She strolled over to the nearest wastebasket and trashed her memories of Craig. She then balanced herself on the wall and felt and apprehensive wave of uneasiness wash over her. It was going to be a long day.

**Does it make it any better?**

At lunch, Manny walked to the cafeteria and paused at the door. Everyone in the room looked up at her. Their glares burned into her skin as she pretended not to notice. She stood and hid outside the door and remembered standing in that hall two years ago. She decorated Craig's locker the day after their first date. She laughed at her immaturity. They had such a history together.

**And the plaster dented from your fist**

**In the hall where you had you first kiss**

**Reminds you that the memories will fade**

She then thought about the incident of two weeks ago, when she had followed Craig into the hall to tell him how she felt. Of course she had lied. All she wanted was to be with Craig, and she told him it was over. She definitely made a mistake.

"Manny..," a voice startled her. She slowly looked up to see Craig.

"Oh! Hey Craig!" she stated cheerfully. He looked at her uneasily as she averted her eyes.

**So this is strange**

**Our sidestepping has come to be a brilliant dance**

**Where nobody leads at all**

"How, um, was your Christmas?" he asked.

"It was okay… uh… a little boring," she answered softly.

"Yeah. Me too," he replied. "I, uh, miss-," he paused. "I went to my uncle's in Quebec."

"Awesome," she said unenthused.

"Well… I guess I better go eat lunch." Craig stated slowly. "See ya?" he asked as he outstretched his hand to help her rise to her feet.

Ignoring his hand and his question, Manny stood and dusted off her pants. She walked off into the hall. Overflowing with regret, she thought of running back to Craig and pleading with him to start over. Why was she so stubborn?

**Where nobody leads at all**

She walked right into the girls' washroom and threw her schoolbag down. She looked at herself in the mirror as a lone tear ran down her cheek. Paige and Hazel walked in behind her and giggled with each other. After Hazel applied lip gloss and Paige shot dirty glances at Manny, the two girls walked out. The bell rang and Manny hesitantly grabbed her bag and walked out of the bathroom.

**And the picture frames are facing down  
And the ringing from this empty sound **

**Is deafening and keeping you from sleep**

Her first class after lunch was English. Manny winced as Mrs. Kwan passed out the scheduled test on Shakespeare. She hadn't studied in forever. She had not actually done anything in a long time. Sleep… eat… talk with friends. All she could do was think about was Craig. She was truly pathetic.

**And breathing is a foreign task**

**And thinking is just too much to ask**

Number 1: What life problem does Romeo symbolize? As she pondered the first question, Manny's mind couldn't help but wander. Who could expect her to take a test when her entire life was crashing down around her? The only boy she had ever loved betrayed her, and she didn't have a single friend on her side. She just wanted this day to be over. Actually, she just wanted week, month, and year to be over. Every second that passed without seeing Craig, Ashley, or Emma was a relief to her.

**And you're measuring your minutes by a clock that's blinking eights. **

She turned in her test, after having guessed most of answers. She was so sick of thinking about Craig. Her feelings for him consumed her thoughts and actions. She couldn't wait for things to get back to normal.

**Well this is incredible, starving, insatiable**

**Yes, this is love for the first time.**

Despite her regrets, Manny knew she still had feelings for Craig. He was the first boy she loved. And she would always love him. She smiled and returned to her seat.

**You like to think you were invincible**

**Yeah well, weren't we all once**

**Before we felt lost for the first time?**

**Well this is the last time**

She walked out of the class and was glad to know things would be okay. She would love again. And she would love another boy.

**This is the last time**

She would never make the same mistake again. She would never love someone who didn't care for her again. This was the last time.

**This is the last time**


	3. Sick Cycle Carousel

"Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day

**If shame had a face, I think it would kind of look like mine**

**If it had a home, would it be my eyes?**

Ashley's face felt hot when Craig walked into her third period English class. She twirled a chunk of hair at the nape of her neck as she tilted her head towards the window. She rolled her eyes at a few snickers emerging from the back of the classroom. Her best friend Ellie placed a knowing hand on Ashley's shoulder and turned to look at Craig as he paused uncomfortably in the doorway. Ashley pretended to be preoccupied with writing something randomly in her notebook, but she couldn't take it for very long. While he edged slowly to his seat, Ashley glanced slightly up at him. Time stood still as they locked eyes.

**Would you believe me if I said I'm tired of this?**

**Well here we go now, one more time**

Despite everything, she couldn't help but melt when she saw him. As he managed a weak smile, she exhaled and winced. How much could she take from him? The bell rang and Mrs. Kwan asked the class to take their seats and settle down. Kwan was more boring than usual and the class dragged on forever. Ashley stared at the back of Craig's head with both anger and curiosity. She wanted to know what he had to say to her; it had been two weeks after all. She was positive he would have thought of something. She picked at her cuticles, wondering why she cared so much. All Craig ever did was hurt her, and all she ever did was let him.

**I tried to climb your steps**

**I tried to chase you down**

Ashley gathered her books slowly as the bell rang. Her classmates rushed out to the hallway, leaving only she, Craig, and Mrs. Kwan in the classroom. Ashley scratched her chin and he awkwardly searched for something to say.

"How were your holidays?" Craig questioned. As if. Ashley was speechless. She tore out of the room, brushing his shoulders lightly as she passed.

He betrayed her; he cheated on her with a grade nine at that.

**I tried to see how low I could get it down to the ground**

**I tried to earn my way**

Ashley walked into the Degrassi Front Office and sat down. The secretary smiled at her knowingly. "Not feeling well again, Miss Kerwin?" she prodded. Ashley blinked her eyes to eradicate the forming moistness. She looked at the elderly woman and shook her head. "I'll call your step-father," she offered kindly.

"Thanks," Ashley replied.

Craig wasn't sorry. Craig betrayed her and killed her soul, but he wasn't _sorry. _Craig was simply like a shrew who needed taming, or so Ashley thought.

**I tried to tame this mind**

**You better believe that I tried to beat this**

CRAIG WASN'T CAPABLE OF LOVE. She tried. She tried hard. But to her dismay, she couldn't change him. They dated for a while, in terms of high school relationships at least. But more significantly, they truly loved each other. Ashley would always remember Craig as the one who showed her that love was not always enough.

**So when will this end it goes on and on**

**Over and over and over again**

**Keep spinning around I know that it won't stop **

**Till I step down from this for good**

Mr. Isaacs and Ashley rode silently in the car on the way home. He sighed as she pressed her face against the car window. She watched helplessly as buildings, people, and lives passed her by. She always found it pretty morbid to think about "the big, wide world" out there. But on days like this, it was the sustenance that kept her breathing. Her life and her relationship with Craig was a rotating and sickening ride from hell. Ups and downs were simply too much to handle.

"Ashley, how long until you finish a whole day of school?" Mr. Isaacs questioned warily.

Ashley closed her eyes and tried to not explode. She quivered and let out a whimper before bursting into full-blown hysteria. This was the last time, the last god damn time she would let Craig Manning hurt her like this.

**I never thought I'd end up here**

**Never thought I'd be standing where I am**

**I guess I kinda thought it would be easier than this**

**I guess I was wrong now, one more time**

She couldn't face Craig. She couldn't face him ever again because she hated him. But… by hate, she meant disliked. Slightly. Kind of…

She and Craig would never be over. Ashley didn't ever have the strength to end things, but she felt strong today. She was going to stand up to him. She would end this ride for now.

**Sick cycle carousel**

**Sick cycle carousel**

**Sick cycle carousel**


End file.
